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Jharkhand: Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on charges of money laundering. Hours before being whisked away by ED officials, Hemant submitted his resignation to Governor CP Radhakrishnan around 8.30 pm, while the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha announced the name of his close aide and transport minister Champai Soren as the next CM.
The arrest came after more than seven hours of questioning related to an alleged land fraud case. He was taken to the ED office where he will undergo a medical check-up, officials said. Meanwhile, sources indicated that Hemant Soren, who resigned from his position and was subsequently arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), is scheduled to appear before a court on Thursday.
The probe agency is expected to seek custody of Soren and present the evidence gathered against the de facto JMM chief. State Congress president Rajesh Thakur said,”Hemant Soren has resigned as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand. The ruling JMM-Congress-RJD alliance has proposed the name of senior JMM leader Champai Soren as the new CM.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Hemant Soren filed a police complaint against Enforcement Directorate officials, seeking action under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Soren, a Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader, submitted his resignation to Governor CP Radhakrishnan at the Raj Bhavan before being taken to the ED office.
Sources indicate that the 48-year-old leader was perceived as “evasive” during questioning, leading to his arrest under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED is expected to present Soren before a special PMLA court, seeking his remand for custodial interrogation. During the second round of questioning, the agency posed 15 questions to Soren, following an initial session on January 20.
According to the probe agency, He was questioned as part of a probe into a “huge racket of illegal change of ownership of land by the mafia” in Jharkhand. Before taking him into custody, Soren was shown typed statements recorded with the agency, and his signatures were sought on these documents. The nature of his response to these requests remains unclear.
Earlier, Hemant Soren underwent questioning by the ED regarding the same matter.Section 144 imposed near CM’s residence un response to the unfolding situation, Section 144 has been imposed within a radius of one hundred meters around the Chief Minister’s residence from 9 AM to 10 PM. I ED officials stated that the prolonged investigation aims to probe a significant racket involving the unlawful alteration of land ownership by a ‘mafia’ in Jharkhand.
